1. Field
The technology described herein relates to the design of circuits, and more particularly to the design of circuits by interconnecting individual components (e.g., gallium nitride material components) which have been pre-fabricated on an integrated circuit.
2. Discussion of Related Art
Modern day circuit designers have two main options for constructing circuits. The first option is to build a circuit from discrete components. As an example, the circuit designer may take various off-the-shelf components, place them on a circuit board, and interconnect them to form the desired circuit. The second option is to build an integrated circuit. Integrated circuits are circuits in which the discrete components are formed on, and integrated with, a substrate, such as a silicon wafer. Each of these options has benefits and drawbacks relative to the other, but neither is perfect in every situation.
The first option (i.e., connecting off-the-shelf discrete components) offers the circuit designer flexibility in choosing where to place, and how to interconnect, the various discrete circuit components to form the desired circuit. However, there are also drawbacks. For example, discrete components can occupy more real estate than is desirable to dedicate to the building of the circuit, for instance because each discrete component is individually packaged. In addition, discrete components are unlikely to be highly identical, even when they are intended to be. This is because discrete components, even when made by a single manufacturer, may differ due to processing variations arising in different batches, on different days, or at different times. Thus, the circuit designer may have great difficulty in designing a circuit which requires highly identical components to achieve desired operating characteristics. Another drawback is the introduction of parasitics which adversely effect the performance of the circuit, especially at higher RF frequencies.
The second option (i.e., forming an integrated circuit) increases the likelihood that components which are meant to be identical will in fact be so, due to the reduced processing variations when making an integrated circuit as compared to when making discrete components. However, integrated circuits offer the end user little or no flexibility in connecting the circuit components because they are interconnected as part of the fabrication process. For example, a customer who purchases an integrated circuit multiplexer cannot rearrange the circuit components to form some other type of circuit. Rather, the circuit will only function as a multiplexer because it is hardwired to do so.